U.K. may punish publication of NSA leaks

10/28/13 1:11 PM EDT

Via Reuters, British Prime Minister David Cameron said on Monday his government was likely to act to stop newspapers publishing what he called damaging leaks from former U.S. intelligence operative Edward Snowden unless they began to behave more responsibly.

"If they (newspapers) don't demonstrate some social responsibility it will be very difficult for government to stand back and not to act," Cameron told parliament, saying Britain's Guardian newspaper had "gone on" to print damaging material after initially agreeing to destroy other sensitive data.

Glenn Greenwald, the journalist responsible for the bulk of stories about the NSA leaks, called the move "repressive."